[Football] An open letter from Graham Potter

[B-right-on]

Yep - time to move on. Cheers for a great 3 years.

1 good year.

 

[Seasider78]

Does the sun shine more or less out of the arse of GP if he left in a second or discussed it for weeks?

Sure, I think I can enlighten you about at least half of the "conversations between owners"

Boehly: "Hi, we're gonna pay the £16m buyout clause and take Graham Potter from you and there's absolutely nothing you can do about it since it would be a breach of contract if you didn't allow us to talk to him."

Not sure what Tony answered but as GP left and there's no talk of any impending lawsuit, he probably didn't have much of a choice other than to go with it.

Still no one has been able to explain or even give as much as a partial answer to why Boehly - if he had decided in August to sack Tuchel and appoint Potter - would have waited weeks into the new season and allowing Tuchel to spend hundreds of millions of pounds if it was decided a long time ago he'd be sacked.

I think the plan for this season was Tuchel but he is being imploding in front of everyone’s eyes for the last month so you can only imagine what that looks like behind the scenes with the owner. My feeling is that when things turned sour with Tuchel back up options were quickly discussed and imagine the Albion and Potter were part of those discussions. I can’t see how it could move that quickly otherwise especially on the Albion side

 

[GrizzlingGammon]

You know very little

It all comes to him in a weed and pizza induced coma.

 

[Swansman]

Shut up for once.

Some of us have very close contact with people in and around the club. We may just know a bit more than someone like you.

The odds of a well-run club providing inside information to a grumpy old bloke who day out and day in throw more shit around him than a caged cholera infected monkey... I consider the chances slim.

 

[Swansman]

I think the plan for this season was Tuchel but he is being imploding in front of everyone’s eyes for the last month so you can only imagine what that looks like behind the scenes with the owner. My feeling is that when things turned sour with Tuchel back up options were quickly discussed and imagine the Albion and Potter were part of those discussions. I can’t see how it could move that quickly otherwise especially on the Albion side

The club could not do anything if the buyout clause was met. No resistance.

 

[Wozza]

If it had been to a Villa or Newcastle I would have been raging but English coaches don’t get offers top six very often to say the least.

This is a very salient point.

 

[Hugo Rune]

It does surprise me how quickly Potter took the job and seemingly negotiated to get all the coaches out within 24 hours. Even with a release clause.

Potter is a details man, Chelsea under Boehly is a work in progress with many unknowns in terms of appointing various roles still open at the club. He must have had a lot of questions answered very quickly to move in the way he did, so presumably there has been some sounding out in advance I imagine.

It took us 2 weeks to secure Potter didn’t it ?

My guess is that as soon as Chelsea informed our club that they’d be meeting the buy-out clauses, there was nothing the club could do. Nothing at all.

I think Potter and his agent drew up a ‘wish-list’ including the staff he wanted to bring along (having checked with them first of course) and the salary he’d be looking for plus a guarantee that he’d be given time.

I strongly suggest that the Todd agreed to all of his demands pretty much from the off.

From then, it’s in the interest of everyone to get it done as quickly as possible.

 

[PILTDOWN MAN]

The odds of a well-run club providing inside information to a grumpy old bloke who day out and day in throw more shit around him than a caged cholera infected monkey... I consider the chances slim.

Really? What a prick

 

[Lever]

Wait...

'The squad are playing at a high level and will get better.... '(Potter)

Does this infer he will refrain from scooping up our best players?

 

[Perry's Tracksuit Bottoms]

Was this actually written by Graham Potter?

I'm wracking my brains to think of someone else in the club who might have written an overlong letter full of platitudes but... no... I don't think anyone comes to mind.

 

[Springal]

My guess is that as soon as Chelsea informed our club that they’d be meeting the buy-out clauses, there was nothing the club could do. Nothing at all.

I think Potter and his agent drew up a ‘wish-list’ including the staff he wanted to bring along (having checked with them first of course) and the salary he’d be looking for plus a guarantee that he’d be given time.

I strongly suggest that the Todd agreed to all of his demands pretty much from the off.

From then, it’s in the interest of everyone to get it done as quickly as possible.

Yeah maybe , just seems quick - Chelsea don’t even have a CEO or director of football yet right ?

 

[dolphins]

One thing that did strike me was, despite the thanks for the players, Tony, et al, there was no direct thanks to the fans. Sure, the fans were mentioned a few times, but I was surprised not to see something like "And most of all, I'd like to thank the fans for their support".

Generally, it all comes across a bit like he was told to write something to explain why he sodded off so quickly (when he was offered a big pile of cash, and the promise that "we'll get whatever other Brighton players you want in January or the summer"), and comes across as a bit peeved that he had to do it.

 

[Swansman]

Wait...

'The squad are playing at a high level and will get better.... '(Potter)

Does this infer he will refrain from scooping up our best players?

He certainly has in the past. Could have signed Ken Sema, Saman Ghoddos and two or three other Championship-ready players to Swansea, but didn't. Could have signed Joe Rodon, Matt Grimes, Connor Roberts and other promising Swansea players to Brighton, but didn't.

I don't think its a choice based on moral, rather he doesn't want the players in the club to feel that there is some kind of favoritism towards his former players, so he just avoids bringing in his old warriors. Could be wrong of course but that is my guess.

 

[Icy Gull]

My guess is that as soon as Chelsea informed our club that they’d be meeting the buy-out clauses, there was nothing the club could do. Nothing at all.

I think Potter and his agent drew up a ‘wish-list’ including the staff he wanted to bring along (having checked with them first of course) and the salary he’d be looking for plus a guarantee that he’d be given time.

I strongly suggest that the Todd agreed to all of his demands pretty much from the off.

From then, it’s in the interest of everyone to get it done as quickly as possible.

Going to go cynical again here, there is no way Chelsea would have sacked Tuchel without having his replacement lined up. They did not know the Queen was going to die and put football on hold at the time.

No fecking way….Potter IS lying to us and I really hope Bloom comes out with what really happened in the fullness of time.

 

[SIMMO SAYS]

Was this actually written by Graham Potter?

I'm wracking my brains to think of someone else in the club who might have written an overlong letter full of platitudes but... no... I don't think anyone comes to mind.

The fake swede wrote it.

 

[Swansman]

Going to go cynical again here, there is no way Chelsea would have sacked Tuchel without having his replacement lined up. They did not know the Queen was going to die and put football on hold at the time.

No fecking way….Potter IS lying to us and I really hope Bloom comes out with what really happened in the fullness of time.

Why did they - according to most sources - talk with several potential managers in case the GP thing didn't happen if they were sure he would come?

But yeah if Potter is lying and he was illegally tapped up, you'll definitely hear about it, no chance of TB not taking it to court in that case.

 

[PILTDOWN MAN]

Comedy gold!

You are being very naive.

 

[Icy Gull]

The fake swede wrote it.

Nah, he was totally convinced Potter wouldn’t take the Chelsea job when it was first muted, much as he likes to kid us he knows more than us he doesn’t.

 

[Icy Gull]

Why did they - according to most sources - talk with several potential managers in case the GP thing didn't happen if they were sure he would come?

But yeah if Potter is lying and he was illegally tapped up, you'll definitely hear about it, no chance of TB not taking it to court in that case.

Not saying he was tapped up, I’m sure TB was in the loop. It’s the suggestion in his platitude to Albion fans that he didn’t know it would happen at the time of the Leicester game I don’t believe.

How are the Chelsea fans taking to you?

 

[Swansman]

Yeah maybe , just seems quick - Chelsea don’t even have a CEO or director of football yet right ?

And from all information available to us, it was quick.

Do you think that after the Cucurella negotiations, where TB creamed out every possible pound there was to cream out and then had the club publicly laugh at Chelsea saying there was no deal yet, that Boehly would have thought "lets do some negotiations with this bloke and see where it takes us!"... no way. Some way or another, Bloom would have skinned them for £50m despite the £16m buyout clause.

Boehly just paid the buyout and gave GP a surreal contract and it was all very swift. At least everything points in that direction.